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Marwa M. Hassoun

Marwa's practice is focused on assisting clients with compliance with export and import regulations. She advises US and non-US companies on international regulatory issues, including civilian and military export controls, economic sanctions, antiboycott regulations, and customs regulations. Her practice includes drafting license applications, ruling requests, protests, commodity jurisdiction and classification requests, advisory opinion requests, disclosures, and other submissions to various government agencies, including the Directorate of Defense Trade Control (DDTC), the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the Census Bureau, and the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). Marwa has experience in various industries, including aerospace, space, defense, arms, telecommunications, electronics, information technology, chemicals, and industrial manufacturing.

Client Work

Marwa’s recent matters include:

Counseling clients on risk management, audits and investigations involving alleged criminal and civil breaches of US trade control laws.

Advising clients on compliance with US customs regulations, including investigations, prior disclosures, focused assessments, rules of origin and marking issues, the determination of tariff classifications under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the US (HTSUS), and the analysis of the application of duty preference programs.

Assisting clients with the preparation of export- and import-related compliance training, manuals, and company policies.

Counseling clients with reviews by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) and pre-closing and post-closing acquisition export compliance due diligence.

Advising clients on the importation of firearms, ammunition, explosives, and machine guns pursuant to regulations administered by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms (ATF).

Previous Work

Prior to joining Arent Fox, Marwa was an international trade associate in the Los Angeles and Washington, DC offices of two prominent international law firms. She also served as a law clerk to the US Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of California while attending law school.

Professional Activities

Marwa currently serves on the board of directors for the California Global Trade & Logistics Advisory Committee. Marwa is affiliated with the American Bar Association, the Los Angeles County Bar Association, the Arab American Lawyers Association of Southern California, as well as Women in International Trade – Los Angeles.

Presentations

“How Your Company Could Benefit from ITAR Licensing Exemptions: The Top 5 Most Common Missteps to Avoid When Applying Tricky Eligibility Criteria,” American Conference Institute, ITAR Bootcamp, San Diego, California, May 22, 2017.

“ITAR Sections 120.3 and 120.4: How to Structure Your Classification Approach, and Draft a CJ Instead of Conducting a Self-Determination,” American Conference Institute, ITAR Bootcamp, San Diego, California, May 22, 2017.

“The Legal Do's and Don'ts of an International Transaction,” Los Angeles Board of Equalization, in cooperation with the Port of Los Angeles, the Mayor's Office of International Trade and Bank of America Merrill Lynch, American Jewish University, Simi Valley, California, January 20, 2017.

“How to Find and Make Sense of Evolving Encryption Controls across Multiple Jurisdictions: Who to Contact and Where to Look Toward Mapping Out Your Global Classification and Licensing Strategy,” American Conference Institute, 6th Advanced Industry Forum on Global Encryption and Cybersecurity Controls, San Francisco, California, March 30, 2016.

“The Future of US – China Trade Relations,” 2015 LegalPorts Conference, Cal State Long Beach Center for International Trade and Transportation and Los Angeles County Bar Association, Long Beach, California, March 19, 2015.

“Export Controls Overview: Focusing on Legal and Business Strategies for Exporting to Japan and the Philippines,” Port of Los Angeles and Los Angeles County Bar Association Advanced TradeConnect Workshop, Los Angeles, California, January 23, 2015.

Life Beyond the Law

In her spare time, Marwa enjoys traveling, gardening, creative writing and anything to do with astrophysics and space exploration.

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